Sincerity
by Authoress of Evil
Summary: When confronted by the Charmed Ones in Prince Charmed, Chris says something that makes Piper lose control. On indefinite hiatus. Probably discontinued. Possible rewrite in the future.
1. Loss of Control

**Sincerity**

**A Charmed Fanfiction**

**Chapter 1: Loss of Control**

When confronted by the Charmed Ones in Prince Charmed, Chris lets out a little more than he had intended.

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**A/N: 2/28/12: Um… hi all! Heh… It's been over a year since I've updated this… Wow. Anyway, I feel guilty. Ergo, I'm going through it again, and trying to improve it, and make it better, and hopefully add a few chapters. Hope you all can bear with me! This is NOT abandoned. By ANY means whatsoever.**

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A/N: First off, for anyone who has read Key Moments In Time, 1) I have no current plans on continuing Importance. If there are any suggestions or requests for any further one-shots, I'll be glad to give it a whirl.

This is a really dark story. Not for the light-hearted. There is language and gore, and it isn't very pleasant. It's basically what would happen if Chris had a different way of getting Wyatt back from the Order, and if Piper was a tad more pissed than she was in the show. It went way differently than I intended and... well... you'll see.

Also, be sure to check the foot notes. Look out for the (#)s, and when you see them, quickly scroll down and check what it has to say about it at the bottom. K?

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"I was only trying to protect Wyatt!" I exclaimed, silently begging them to just drop it, even though I knew they wouldn't. After all, I wouldn't have if I had been in their position. I inherited that trait from my mother, who just so happened to be the stubborn woman I was trying to convince that I was good. Go figure, right?

"By tricking us?" she asked distrustfully, an irritated look on her face.

"I had to," I urged, trying to bite back the retort that was begging to slip off my tongue. The truth that might just shut them up long enough to let me explain my plan on how to get Wyatt _back_.

"Why?" Phoebe demanded angrily, as if _she _had been betrayed by _me_. Seriously, do they not _see_ what is right in front of them? That did it-

"Because the only reason I came back here is to keep Wyatt from turning evil!" I growled before I could stop myself.

Not a second had passed and I already had a sickening sensation filling my gut. Did I really just say that? Their reactions were… painful, to say the least. Phoebe was expressionless, but she looked to Piper for answers. Leo looked almost… _hurt _and thoroughly suspicious, immediately saying, "_Turning evil?"_

Paige appeared almost desperate and uncertain as she added, "Wait, don't you mean _stopping _evil from _hurting _him?"

But they weren't the worst. It was Piper's open-mouthed stare as she just looked at me with incredulity that rocked me to the core.

I took a breath, and, shaking my head, I said, "I didn't think you'd help me if you knew the truth. I _knew_ you wouldn't." _Because I know you…_ came the unspoken ending. Leo looked at me, demanding an explanation with his eyes. Paige gave this little, _well, yeah; you've got a point there, _look. Phoebe looked around awkwardly, trying to ignore that I had spoken the truth. But, once again, Piper's reaction killed me inside. Her dumbfounded expression didn't change as she looked first at me, then at her shoes.

Trying to fight back the tears from so many memories that I'd had, and at the same time attempting (and failing) to stop my voice from breaking, I continued. "The evil I came back to stop isn't a demon," I admitted waveringly, before looking up to meet each of their eyes. "It's Wyatt."

Phoebe stared at me with sadness, as if she was picking up on my inner despair, which is _impossible_, seeing as I took the empath blocking potion. But Piper… she looked heartbroken. She stared at me for a moment before her gaze turned accusatory. "You're lying!"

Looking her right in the eye, I defended myself, telling the complete and utter truth for the first time since long before I had come to the past, "No, I'm not. He's going to grow up and terrorize people with his powers. Take over." I had to fight as hard as I could to keep my gaze level with hers as I continued, "Kill, even."

She looked away quickly; probably having seen the double meaning behind what I had said… _who _he had killed. I had to fight with everything I had in me to _not _think of my mother's blood-soaked body as I came home from school on my birthday, of neither my father nor Wyatt – the latter's reason I now knew why – coming when I called them to heal her, of her dying words… of her final breaths…

Leo laughed harshly, like he usually does when he doesn't believe something for a second, and said, "Why should we believe you after all the lies?"

"Because you have to," I said simply, not knowing of a better answer. I had given away far too much.

Piper glared at me and retorted, "No, Chris, we don't, actually."

The moment she finished, I couldn't stop myself, and my mouth acted of its own accord for the _second _time that conversation, "Fine! Then don't! Either way, we have to save Wyatt now, and I'm the one who knows how to do it!"

As soon as I said the words, I regretted it. Idiot! Idiot! Idiot! They're going to ask how, and then it's game over.

"Oh, really? How?" Phoebe snapped.

"Well, I haven't actually tried it yet in _this _time, but in the future, before he turns – and it _is _the truth whether you believe me or not, so don't even start!" I yelled, interrupting Leo as he went to open his big trap, effectively closing it. "Anyway, before Wyatt goes all Anakin Skywalker on us, he and I shared a bond, kind of like your Power of Three, just different and far stronger."

Leo laughed openly at that, and I knew what was coming next. "That's _impossible!_ There is nothing stronger than the Power of Three other than Wyatt. You just gave yourself away! You couldn't possibly share a bond with him! You aren't even blood relatives!"

I scowled at him, and shook my head, "That's what you said when we were young and it was starting to develop. Or, at least the first part. That's when the two of us decided to research more about fra-magical bonds and we figured out how to use it. We can sense each other's emotions, hear each other's thoughts, and we can always sense each other – even when one of us was in the Underworld. Now, can the Power of Three do that? Nope. I guess, if we're still going with elusive Star Wars terms, _the force was strong with us_," I continued, trying to keep the mood light, even if it was anything but.

Leo cocked his head, thoroughly skeptical, yet still slightly curious. "So, what you're saying is, not only do you know us in the future, but you are such close friends with Wyatt that you share an empathetic, telepathic, and sensing bond? That makes no sense, and is completely implausible."

"But it is possible?" (1) I asked, even though I already knew the answer. His lack of a reply confirmed it.

"So, wait," Paige chimed in. "You can use this supposed 'bond' to find my nephew and bring him back to us?"

"Yes, I can," I said, relieved that someone had _finally_ gotten the message.

"NO WAY!" Piper yelled, making my victory short-lived. "Why should we believe you anyway?"

"Because it's the only way to save him," I insisted, looking at her pleadingly. A small part of me wished I could just tell her the truth right then and there, but I knew I couldn't. "Please, let me help."

"Chris, we don't need your help," Piper replied harshly after a moment of silence. "I will get my son back and when I do, I don't want to see you anymore."

Her words cut a hole through my heart, and for just a moment, I let my barriers down. Suddenly, I really wished I hadn't taken that empath blocking potion, because if Phoebe knew the pain I was in right now, they'd think twice about what they were going to do next. But, I had, so all I could do was look at each of them pleadingly, as I finally let an ounce of the pain I felt show in my eyes.

But, I couldn't give up. I _had _to save my brother. "Please, Piper. You _have_ to believe me!" I urged.

Unfortunately for me, that seemed to be the final straw for her, because she then did something that surprised us all.

"No, you know what? I AM FREAKING TIRED OF YOUR BULLSHIT! I am done. Done. DONE! With all of it! SO GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HOUSE! And stay away from my son," she screeched, trying to blow me up with nearly every other word (2). And worse… succeeding. With every blast I took, the pain in my abdomen got bigger and bigger until, with a sickening splat, a large glob of blood rushed to the floor.

As the other two sisters and Leo (who had _obviously_ forgotten about his fancy-shmancy healing power) stared in shock at Piper, I fell to my knees from the sheer agony of the hole in my chest, as well as the nerve wracking pain of who put it there (although I bet the blood loss wasn't really helping). After just as few seconds, I was finding it awfully difficult to breathe, be it from the fact that the lower half of my lungs were probably mush, or withholding tears was just a tad too hard.

Pressing a hand to my chest to try (vainly) to stem the flow of the hot, sticky liquid seeping out of my chest and through my fingers, I managed to cough out, "If you wanted me g-gone… all you had to do w-was… ask. Just… do me a-a favor. Stay away… from Leo around Wyatt's… birthday. Then… I'll never be able t-to…bother you a-again." And then, before the wetness in my eyes could overflow, they could digest my words, or I could pass out, I orbed away.

I'm not sure what part of my mind decided to bring me to the Golden Gate Bridge, but that's where I ended up. Instantaneously, I started coughing, blood spurting out of my mouth in addition from in between my fingers now. Simultaneously, the tears I'd been holding back fell full force, mixing with all the blood and making it impossible to breathe.

That's when it hit me. I was going to die. And the last words I had said to my family were telling them how to stop me from existing. And, even worse, I had been sincere.

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A/N… again: This is might receive a few negative reviews due to the canonical accuracy. For one, why would Wyatt put his shield up around Chris if they still share a bond? Easily answered, and I addressed it in the story. Chris hadn't tried to access the bond in this time, and technically, since he wasn't born yet, Wyatt doesn't know about it, or what it is, so _he _can't access it unless Chris does first, thus bringing it into fruition between those two. It's kind of complicated, but there it is. If you still have questions, tell me in your review, and I'll happily answer.

FOOTNOTES! :D:D:D:D

1) I REALLY wanted to put, "But possible it is?" but I thought that would be pushing it a tad with the Star Wars references. When I put the "pulled an Anakin Skywalker on us" and then "the force was strong with us" I KNEW I couldn't stop it just there, but I had to!

2) So, it's like this: "No, you know what? I AM FREAKING **BOOM!** TIRED **BOOM!** OF YOUR **BOOM!** BULLSHIT! I am done. **BOOM!** Done. **BOOM!** DONE! **BOOM!** With all of it! **BOOM!** SO GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HOUSE! **BOOM!** And stay away from my son! **KA-BOOM!**" Got it? She fired at him a bunch of times, and by the end of it, he was pretty much on the verge of a mental breakdown from being blasted at by his mom. Not to mention… well, just go back up there and read on.

**A/N: 2/28/12: **Really, though, I will finish going through this. I fully intend to. I have a LOT of intentions to fix this huge stupid mess of evilness... So... yeah!


	2. Hear My Cry

**Chapter 2: Hear My Cry**

A/N: Wow... short wait. You guys must be thrilled! Now, this one is kind of confusing, because I decided not to add whose PoV each part is in, and this has MANY PoVs. I think I gave enough info for you to figure out, but I'll put which is which at the bottom. This entire fic happens at about the same time, except for one person's PoV. I spent quite a while trying to decide whether or not to use this person, but everyone kept requesting him, and I just couldn't stay away from the drama that comes from it! :D

So, that person's PoV is scattered between just about everyone else's.

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**A/N: 8/17/11 – Hey! The revision is going well so far! I'm kind of only revising it to get a feel for it again… Oh, and I inserted the PoVs where they are changed. I feel like a freaking idiot for not doing that in the first place… and I even added a pretty little text thingy: **_**oOo**_**. I dunno. It made me feel better, xD. So… hope you guys don't still hate me! Because I'm 90% sure you do… I'd hate me…**

**A/N: 2/28/12: Ha, well, I'm re-revising this. It's been like, 6 months since I first promised to revise it. And began revising it. And I completely blanked on the actual 'revising' part, and eventually stopped. So… back to the revision! Which is **_**still **_**going pretty well, actually.**

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In Response to ElizabetRose:

Yeah, the first thing that flashed into my mind was to do something like that, with Phoebe having her vision quest and having this "OH SHIT" moment. Or, just having their kid grow into Chris, memories included. And, as a plus, having the bond with Wyatt that Chris told them about. Then I'd just laugh at Piper's horrified face. Then, I thought, what if Leo and Piper honor Chris's last wish, and keep their distance on Wyatt's birthday… and big, future Wyatt from Chris's timeline feels it… but then, I realized that you had overlooked one major fact. Chris isn't dead… yet… But I do think I'll explore that in another fics, if you don't mind. I haven't read anything written like that.

In Response to Moon Phoenix:

Hope this lives up to expectations!

In Response to everyone else:

GLAD YOU LIKED IT! :D

And a special shout out to **Wragziez** and **Calli2009.**

Wragziez - for being persistent

Calli2009 - for being honest, even if I do not wholly agree with your opinion, that's what it is, an opinion. I cut out the footnotes, so I hope that appeases you for now. Unfortunately, this wasn't meant to be a third person story. I may rewrite it in 3rd Person eventually, but for now, you'll just have to deal, or not read it. Sorry! Lucky for you, there's very little "whiny" Chris in this chapter.

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_**oOo **_**Wyatt's PoV **_**oOo**_

Flashes, half-finished memories, a woman's loving smile, a little boy's joyful laugh… all of it rushed through my head as I woke up from what had to be the suckiest nightmare I've ever had. Holding my head gingerly with one hand, I just closed my eyes, trying to sort through the sudden rush of pain. That's when it hit me. Something was wrong. Something was dreadfully, terribly, horribly wrong.

Blinking rapidly, I tested out my powers. "Book!" A book appeared on the bed next to me in a flurry of dark orbs. I blew up a lamp, just to be sure that it was working. So it wasn't that…

Then what could be so dreadfully wrong?

I shook my head, trying to rid myself of the sleepy fog. That's when it hit me.

It felt like a ton of bricks had just been slammed into my stomach. "No!" I gasped angrily. "NO!"

But even through my protests, I could feel the truth in my heart… _Chris…_

That's when I heard it. A mere ghost of the faintest of whispers. _"Wyatt..."_

My eyes widened in fear, heart going a mile a minute. Chris would never, _never_ call for me unless something was dreadfully wrong and he wasn't thinking straight. And the sound was so faint… he was still in the past. And from the sound of it…

_No,_ I thought vehemently, leaping out of my bed, _Nothing could happen to Chris, present or past. Not if I, Lord Wyatt Matthew Halliwell, had anything to say about it._

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_**oOo**_** Phoebe's PoV **_**oOo**_

"PIPER!" I shrieked. "How could you? How _could _you do something like that!"

But all my _violent _older sister could do was stare at her hands in total shock. Her mouth opened, and then abruptly closed as she raced out of the attic. I thought I heard retching, but it could have just been my imagination.

I collapsed on Aunt Pearl's old couch, completely shaken by this turn of events. Yes, I was royally pissed with the idiotic Witchlighter, and yes, I wanted to kick his ass for using Mr. Right against us, but I most certainly didn't want him dead, and I could see that he was telling the truth. I could _feel _it.

By now, I had pretty much figured out that he had taken the empath blocking potion, too, but even that hadn't held his emotions when Piper…

I shook my head, still trying to understand just _what _was going through my sister's mind.

Paige sat down next to me, eyes wide. "Did that really just-?" she started to ask, but I nodded halfway through.

"And she really-?"

"Yeah."

"And Wyatt really-?"

"I think so."

"And Chris is really-?"

"OH SHIT!" I yelped, leaping up and staring straight at Leo.

"What?" he asked, still obviously pale-faced and shaken.

"You have to find him. He could die! You saw what Piper-" I stopped and blanched, suddenly realizing why Piper had ran out of the room.

There, where Chris had been standing, was a huge puddle of blood. That's when I finally grasped why Leo hadn't chased after him. If he had lost that much blood in a few seconds, then by now, he'd have to be…

"Oh, Chris…" I mumbled, trying to blink back tears for our Whitelighter.

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_**oOo **_**Wyatt's PoV **_**oOo**_

I grabbed the book from its hiding place, and began flipping through it frantically before remembering that Chris had taken the time-travel page with him.

"NO!" I roared angrily. "Stupid little brother… how could you be doing this to me?"

I considered calling Mestiver – a low-level demon who was beginning to annoy me – just to vanquish him, but I knew that would be a waste of time.

Then it occurred to me. I _am _Twice-Blessed, aren't I? Surely, I could come up with a sufficient time-travel spell.

"Well, it's worth a shot," I muttered, orbing myself some paper and a pen.

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_**oOo **_**Piper's PoV **_**oOo**_

I had no idea what had happened, where that anger had come from. I hadn't meant to blow him up. Really! It had been a complete and utter accident. You know how our powers come from emotions? Well, mine were fierce and out of control at that point in time, and Chris just had to take the blow.

I really hadn't meant to hurt him. But I had. The huge puddle of… blood on the floor was proof of that.

Then, Phoebe screaming at me was really the last straw. I ran out of the room and threw up. It was just _way _too much to handle. I mean, Wyatt? Evil? Impossible! He's just a baby for God's sakes!

_Not in Chris's time_, a small voice – the voice of reason – spoke in the back of my mind.

And then the way he looked at me… it wasn't like Wyatt had killed _me_? Had he?

No, I'm his mother. He couldn't, even if he _was _evil. Which he wasn't.

Shuddering, I backed away from the toilet. My hands were shaking, but that was a given. I really hoped Leo could find him quick enough. I didn't want Chris dead. Of course I didn't! So far, he had done nothing to harm Wyatt, and I had to remember that.

Once Leo heals him and they get back, I'll apologize for overreacting. I mean, it's not like Chris would actually die… was it?

But still, his words replayed in my mind, over and over again. Yet, I couldn't sort out their meaning.

"_If you wanted me g-gone… all you had to do w-was… ask. Just… do me a favor. Stay away… from Leo around Wyatt's… birthday. Then… I'll never be able t-to…bother you again."_

What did he mean by that? How could keeping my distance from Leo on Wyatt's birthday possibly affect him in any way possible? I shook my head, and shakily got to my feet.

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_**oOo**_** Wyatt's PoV **_**oOo**_

"Ah, perfect," I declared, looking happily at my spell. I was never good at rhyming, but haikus work too? Don't they? I mean, sure, it's not about nature, but it's still a poem right?

"Gorvon! Come!" I called, getting my second in command. I mean, I couldn't just disappear off the map with no explanation, could I? That silly Resistance would surely try to… resist.

"Yes, Lord Halliwell?" he said once he shimmered in.

"I will be taking a little… trip rather soon. I do not know how long I shall be gone. It could be weeks, it could be minutes. I need you to make sure nothing… unsavory ensues in my absence," I ordered.

"Very well, Lord Halliwell. May I ask where you are going?"

"That is none of your concern," I snapped. "You are dismissed."

"Yes, Lord Halliwell," he acknowledged, and shimmered away again.

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_**oOo**_** Paige's PoV **_**oOo**_

_Dude, what the HELL just happened?_

I literally threw my head in my hands, trying –and failing- to make any sense of this situation. I had _never _seen Piper fly off the handle like that. I didn't think it was possible!

The kid did have a point after all. I mean, if he wasn't lying about the bond thing. Besides, if he _did _share the bond, then wouldn't that explain why he came back from the future and not one of us? And, the whole evil thing does make sense. Hadn't we been turned countless times? Apparently, someone learned from other, less fortunate demons' mistakes.

It made sense, but I really didn't like it.

Then, what Piper did… I couldn't process it. And why wasn't Leo orbing after him? The poor kid was only _half _whitelighter! He'd die!

…and Piper would have killed him…

My sister would be a murderer.

"Leo! You have to go after Chris! Right now!" I yelled, leaping to my feet, even though Phoebe had already tried that course of action.

Leo shook his head sadly. "I can't sense him. I have no idea where he is," he said, looking at the floor.

"Leo! There _has _to be a way! I mean, if Chris dies, then Piper… look, as much as I hate to say it, the kid is vital in saving Wyatt. He was right about the whole 'only I can get him back' thing! We _have _to heal him," I urged.

Leo just shook his head again. "I _can't," _he insisted. "I don't know where he is."

After a moment, Phoebe asked, "Wait, where does he usually go? P3, right?"

Leo looked up, a determined glint in his eyes, "Yeah, or the Golden Gate Bridge. We can at least look for him. I'll go to the club. You guys look at Golden Gate Bridge."

Then he orbed away. Looking over to Phoebe, I grabbed her arm and followed his lead… only somewhere different.

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_**oOo**_** Wyatt's PoV **_**oOo**_

I took a deep breath as I let my concern for Chris reemerge.

"Okay, little brother. Let's hope this works," I murmured, taking out the sheet of notebook paper I had written on.

"_For my brother, Chris_

_Through space and time I must go_

_For my baby bro."_

Miraculously, a swirling blue vortex appeared in front of me. "I can't believe that actually worked!" I exclaimed happily, pocketing my beautiful spell.

I walked through the portal, and emerged on top of the Golden Gate Bridge.

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_**oOo **_**Chris's PoV **_**oOo**_

I screamed out in pain. Total, complete, and utter pain. Collapsing from my shaky sitting position, I shuddered, feeling colder and colder by the second. The tears had stemmed by then, but that really didn't make me feel any better. I was dying, after all. It didn't do much good to cry about it.

By that point, I could hardly even see. Black spots soared across my vision, and everything else was extremely blurry. My breath was coming much less rapidly than it should have been, and even that hurt like hell.

Even as it failed, my mind was becoming clearer, and with that clarity came one simple truth: I did _not _want to die. Expanding on that, I didn't want to never exist either.

Oh well, too late for that I guess.

I could feel the darkness pulling at the corners of my consciousness, and I knew that if I succumbed, I would never wake up again.

But I was weak, so weak. I was drained beyond belief, and I didn't want to fight anymore. But I still had to save Wyatt, and I couldn't very well do that if I was dead.

So, in a last ditch effort – one that was doomed to fail, of that much I was certain – I called for my brother. Not the little baby in this timeline. Not the evil overlord in the future. Just Wyatt. My brother. The person I knew was still under that dark ruler.

Somewhere, in my muddled and fading mind, I heard a voice shout something… _was it my name?_ Summoning the last of my strength, I managed to open my eyes a hair's breadth. I saw a pair of familiar, panicking blue eyes staring down at me in concern, and a slight smile started to grace my face… before everything went black.

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A/N: TADA! Beautiful, ain't it?

I kinda wanted to spread Wyatt out through the rest of them. I don't know why, but I felt like it. It did have a nice effect, didn't it? I think so...

Anyway, this is all happening at about the same time. If you want a rundown of what's happening when:

While Wyatt writes his haiku (I always wondered if that would work, and I just really wanted to try it!), Piper runs out of the room, Phoebe and Paige have their little exchange, and Chris is choking to death on his own blood. Lovely, eh?

While Wyatt is chatting with Gorvon, Phoebe freaks out on Leo, Piper is throwing up, Paige is all conflicted, and Chris is bleeding to death. Wow, the pleasantry is just persisting, isn't it?

Slightly after Wyatt goes through the time portal, Piper mulls over what just went down, Leo and the girls are discussing where Chris could be, and Chris is bleeding to death AND choking to death on his own blood.

Sorry I couldn't put Leo's perpective. I just couldn't really come up with a good thing for it. I PROMISE he'll be in a little next chapter.

I know I didn't ask this last chapter, but PLEASE REVIEW! I love reviews. They make me happy.


	3. Dare to Hope

**Chapter 3: Dare to Hope**

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**A/N: 8/17/11 – Hiya, guys! Again! Me from the future… The future me… Whatever, it's getting late and I've already reread/edited two of these chapters, this one being number 3. I only really edited one major fact, which I realized I stupidly added even though it wasn't possible, considering the plotline I've come up with for Wyatt. So. Um. Check the bottom for that little factoid. I don't want to spoil it for those of you who **_**haven't **_**read it yet.**

**A/N: 2/28/12 – Heh, still going through this. Again. I'm not sure where I stopped going through it. But… yeah, I'm set on actually getting another chapter in this time! So, I will! So there! In other news, the fun squiggly of the chapter is: **_**~I~**_

A/N: This chapter was originally _way _longer, but I had to keep rearranging everything and then I realized that about half the chapter was premature, so if it breaks off weirdly anywhere, just tell me in your review, okay?

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I want to huggle all of you for your FANTASTIC reviews, favorites, and alerts that helped this story to be the little one-shot that could! Originally, it was gonna be just a two-shot or a three-shot, but now I have a pretty complex story line planned out, so hang on tight for these next few chapters. Chris is gonna be run through the mill and set up to dry, and then I _still _won't be done with him!

And, without futher ado, the story!

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_**~I~ **_**Wyatt's PoV **_**~I~**_

I stepped out of the portal, grimacing, even though I was hardly surprised to be on the top of the Golden Gate Bridge. Chris loved this little spot, but I was at a loss to the appeal of it. Heights? Not my thing.

Neither was _that. _"Oh my God! Chris!" I yelled as I spotted him, rushing over.

Falling to my knees next to my baby brother, I couldn't think… at _all_. His injuries… they weren't good. Worse than I had expected. The only thing I knew that was able to do this in my time was, well, me. In this time, there were two. I was only a baby, and hardly capable of doing something like this. So that left…

Chris opened his eyes slightly, ceasing all thought in my brain. Our eyes met, and once he seemed to register who I was, a ghost of a smile crept onto his face.

He exhaled.

And then, it seemed as if time had stopped. Or, at least he had. The cars below honked noisily. My racing heartbeat fluttered in my chest. But he… he didn't move. He didn't shift. His chest didn't rise and fall with the steady rhythm of breath. His eyes didn't close. It was as if he was frozen, but that power didn't work on him.

For a moment, I couldn't move. _I _couldn't breathe. I just stared, stared at the still form of my little brother.

Then, all of a sudden, the world restarted and before I knew it, I was shaking him, begging, crying. Pretty much everything the leader of a new age _shouldn't _be doing, but too freaking bad.

"No, Chris. No!" I screamed through my tears. "You have to breathe, Chris! Dammit! Please, little brother, breathe! You have to breathe for me, Chris. Please! YOU NEVER GIVE UP! DON'T START NOW!"

I gave up shaking him after a few minutes. It wasn't working, and I full well knew it. _Damn! Why didn't I take those stupid CPR classes in high school! _"Chris, you never give up. Don't let go, please breathe. Just breathe, dammit!"

Then, the sound of orbs filled the air, but I still didn't turn away from my brother's bo-

_No, _I told myself firmly. _He's not dead. I still have a chance._

Paying the whitelighter, elder, or whoever it was no mind, I didn't stray an inch from Chris, not until I was sure.

Frantically, my fingers searched his neck for a pulse, and, because there _is _still a God, there was one. A really small fading one, but it was there.

As if on cue, his breath started up again, raspy and short, but there. That's about when I realized that the entire moment had only lasted, well, a moment.

With a deep breath, I glanced over my shoulder to see who had orbed in. Of course, the very last two people on planet Earth I had expected to show up were the ones that did. Aunt Paige and Aunt Phoebe… The last time I had seen them… _well…_ Chris was especially displeased with me about that… _Chris…_

"Who are you?" the older sister demanded, "Where's Chris? What are you doing- OH MY GOD!"

After her final exclamation, she stopped talking and instead cried out in pain. Right. Aunt Phoebe was an empath. Forgot about that.

While Aunt Paige was occupied with freaking-out Phoebe, I refocused on Chris. He was still breathing, barely… I had to do something. Fast. Or he else…

No. I can't think about that. He _will_ make it.

"The pain, Paige, he's in so much pain…" Aunt Phoebe muttered, and I decided it. We were leaving before we messed up anything else. I grabbed Chris's hand and orbed away to the only place I knew no one would be.

* * *

_**~I~ **_**Phoebe's PoV **_**~I~**_

The moment we arrived at Golden Gate Bridge, I knew something was off. Then, the blonde man kneeling over something in a corner confirmed it. But, before I could finish asking him who he was… I felt it.

It was like nothing I had ever felt in my entire life. So much devastation, pain, sorrow, loss, regret… it was too much. I couldn't stand, let alone speak.

Then, he orbed away, taking whatever was there with him. The surge of emotion dissipated rapidly after that.

"Paige… that was… horrible," I whispered, tears starting to leak out of the corners of my eyes.

But Paige wasn't paying much attention. "Phoebe, was Chris… you know?"

"Chris? What does Chris have to do with that man?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at my sister.

"Well, who was Blondie standing in front of? Hmm, I do wonder…" she replied sarcastically, though her voice wavered a little.

"I don't know, I was too immobilized by the onslaught of emotions to look," I replied. "But wait, it was Chris?"

Paige nodded sadly, and continued, "And, I'm telling you, he didn't look too good. I'm not sure if he was breathing…"

"But, I mean, this is _Chris_ we're talking about! He can't be… dead? Can he?" I asked, even though I knew the answer.

"He _is_ half-witch. Half-_mortal_-witch," Paige pointed out. "He can take as much as I can, and I doubt I'd be able to take that, though I'd rather not test that theory…"

"Agreed. So, who do you think that blonde guy was?" I inquired, trying my best _not _to notice the rather large puddle of blood where Chris had been laying.

"Well, judging by your reaction to his pain, he's probably a close friend of Chris's," she guessed, pacing back and forth.

_Chris had friends?_ My mind immediately questioned, and I realized suddenly that, as far as I knew, the only ones Chris really came into contact with were demons and us. Speaking of demons…

"But his orbs were black," I remembered, shaking off that guilty train of thought.

"Well, then maybe he has a darklighter friend or two."

"I think he knew us… there was something in his eyes when he saw us. And he looks _really_ familiar. I just can't put my finger on it. In the same way that Chris was when he first came here," I added, shaking my head.

"Probably just a future thing," Paige contradicted. "I bet the creeps all act like that. Come on; let's go tell Leo about this new factor."

* * *

_**~I~ **_**Wyatt's PoV **_**~I~**_

"Come on, Chris. Please hold on, little brother, please hold on. You've got to stay with me, Chris. Please!" I begged once we'd reappeared. I pleaded with my powers to just let me _heal_ him. But that didn't work anymore. Not since I had turned away from that nonsense of good versus evil. I honestly didn't understand that one little bit. Didn't "good" people do "evil" things, and "evil" people do "good" things. Useless adjectives! But all that mattered right now was Chris…

We were in a clearing in the park. It was really deep in the forest, so few could actually get to it. Apparently there was this weird magical fluke that made it so that animals just naturally shied away from it, and people got this weird feeling whenever they were near, but for witchlighters like ourselves, it was just really quiet.

"Chris, just hold on a few more minutes," I pleaded. "I can't heal you. Why that is, I'm still trying to figure out. But, I'm gonna have to get some help. I'll be right back. You _will_ be breathing when I get back, you got that?"

Taking a deep breath, I tried to sense my father, the only one in this time who I _knew _would be able to heal him. He was at P3.

With a final, "Hold on, little brother," I orbed away, hoping that he'd still be here when I got back.

* * *

_**~I~ **_**Leo's PoV **_**~I~**_

"Chris?" I called, looking around P3, which was empty at the moment. "Chris, are you in here?"

How could Piper have blown him up? I mean, she knew that if she did, he would get hurt. I wasn't exactly thrilled with the witchlighter at the moment, but was that really necessary? Then again, he _was _a manipulative little liar… _maybe I shouldn't heal him…_

I shook my head, removing the thought that had leapt unbidden into my mind. _No. I'm an Elder._ We don't just go around _not _healing people who are hurt before we are 100% sure they are evil! And, loathe I was to admit it; I had little proof that Chris was lying.

"Chris? If you're here, say something. You're hurt! I need to heal you!" I yelled, looking around in concern.

I tried sensing him again, but I still couldn't. _Crap._

I flipped around, having heard orbing, and found myself face to face with a perfect stranger. _Wow. That's just perfect._

"You're coming with me," he growled, and before I could do anything, he grabbed my arm and orbed away.

We reformed in a small clearing, which confused me. However, I didn't get much time to think on it, because there, lying on the ground, was Chris. And he was still bleeding.

Pushing me forward, the mysterious man snarled, "Heal. Now."

"Who are you?" I asked, turning around.

"Doesn't matter. Heal Chris," the man urged.

"Why should I?" I demanded crossly, "What is he to you?"

"He's my b-" the man roared furiously, before hesitating, then continuing, "my best friend. Now heal him."

"No," I retorted, silently begging this line of action to work. "Not until you give me one good reason why."

"You want a reason?" he said quietly, but his tone was dangerous… almost worse than if he had been screaming. "I'll give you a reason."

Then, before I knew it, I was on the ground and the man was standing over me with an energy ball in his hand. "IS THIS ENOUGH OF A REASON?" he growled, eyes narrowed into slits.

I smirked, and replied sarcastically, "I'm an Elder. Do you think I'm scared of an energy ball?"

His eyebrows shot all the way up to his hairline. "Y-you're an Elder? Chris, what did you do?" he muttered, shaking his head. "How long?"

"Since the Titans," I replied, confused. "So, you're not going to try and kill me?"

"No… I wasn't going to kill you anyway. It would affect too much in the future. Look, can you please heal Chris's injuries. I'll explain everything once you do. Just, please heal him. He's all I have left," he begged. Afterwards, a sour look crossed his face, and I couldn't help but wonder why.

"Alright. I'll heal him, but after we _will_ talk," I said, then proceeded to the boy in question.

Stretching my hands out, I thought of Piper, how much I loved her, and just let that love flow through my hands, in the form of golden light.

But something strange happened. It wasn't working as well as it should have.

"Why isn't it working?" he asked, not in the usual demanding tone, but a voice that made me think of a scared child. "Why isn't he healing? Chris? Chris? Please hold on. Please! Heal him already!"

"It- uh, it _is_ working. But something's wrong. Why on earth is this taking so long?" I asked aloud.

That's about when Chris stopped breathing.

* * *

A/N: OMG! Was that a- a- a- a cliffy? O_O

Not for me! :D Heheheheh... I'm so evil, aren't I? No? Well, we'll have to change that...

:) Hope you liked the chapter!

**A/N: 8/17/11 – The little edit that you need to keep in mind is this line: **

Aunt Paige and Aunt Phoebe… The last time I had seen them…_ well… _Chris was especially displeased with me about that…

**Before, I said that the last time he had seen them, they had been captured/taken into custody for one reason or another, but I decided that this worked WAY better. Especially seeing as it was one of the facts that just **_**didn't fit.**_** And now it does. Yay!**


	4. Saving Grace

**A/N: 8/18/11: Howdy, all. I'm still revising everything, but it's going good. Soon, I'll have another chapter posted, and you'll actually become aware of the fact that I've been doing something with this, xD.**

* * *

Hey! The start of this chapter is a little confusing, so just bear with me here. If you have any serious confusion whatsoever, just tell me, and I'll do my best to edit it. Seriously, though, I really like the way it turned out. I'll explain more in the bottom A/N, so that I don't give anything away.

Anywho, I'll say more at the bottom. HAVE FUN! :D

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Chris's PoV …**_**o~O**_

"WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOU?"

I jolted awake, staring incredulously at the man that was hardly an inch away from my face.

"Wyatt?" I asked, royally confused.

"I REPEAT, WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOU?" he yelled again, glaring at me, even though his eyes held anything but hate.

Well this was an interesting turn of events.

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Wyatt's PoV …**_**o~O**_

_5 Minutes Previously_

"Chris! For God's sakes, just heal him! Please!" I begged, all coherent thought whisked from my mind.

"I can't," Dad whispered under his breath. I shook my head harshly, glaring daggers at my father's back. "I can't heal the d-"

"NO! Don't you DARE!" I growled angrily, forgetting that this man didn't realize he was Chris's father… or mine for that matter, but that was another story. "You are never there for him! NOW WOULD BE A DAMN GOOD TIME TO START!"

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?" he asked confusedly, clearly giving up.

"_What is that supposed to mean?_" I mimicked. "WHAT DO YOU FRIGGING THINK IT MEANS, DAD? That's your SON DOWN THERE! NOW HEAL HIM! HEAL MY LITTLE BROTHER! RIGHT NOW!"

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Chris's PoV …**_**o~O**_

"YOU TOLD HIM?" I demanded disbelievingly. "Why the _hell_ did you tell him?"

"Come on Chris, you were dead!" Wyatt defended, "Remembering little things like 'Dad isn't Dad' wasn't big on the 'important' list! Now, can I continue?"

"Yeah, go ahead…"

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Wyatt's PoV …**_**o~O**_

"W-what?" he said dumbly, looking at me in horror, then whipped around to look at Chris. "Chris is my- _no_!" he groaned, falling to his knees next to my brother.

_What a hypocrite_, I thought angrily. "Okay, now that you know the truth, HEAL HIM!" I roared.

"I still can't," he whimpered. _Pathetic, but- WHAT?_

"Excuse me? Didn't you notice the word _SON_ mixed in there?" _Dammit, this isn't going according to plan._

"He's still dead. Why didn't he-

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Chris …**_**o~O**_

"WAIT! If I was dead, how am I… well, not dead?" I urged confusedly.

"Shut up and I'll tell you! Jeez…"

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Wyatt …**_**o~O**_

-tell us the truth? Piper would never have-"

I stopped listening after "dead." Screaming angrily, I threw an energy ball at him-

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Chris …**_**o~O**_

"YOU DID WHAT?" I screamed, "You do realize that if you hurt Leo, I could vanish from existence? IDIOT!"

"If you can't shut your trap, I'm going to just leave you to wonder about how you magically came back from the dead. And I know how much you hate a mystery, but if that's what you want, we can st-"

"No! I mean, it's okay. You can continue," I interrupted, urging him to go on.

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Wyatt (again) …**_**o~O**_

-but he dodged. Instead, it hit Chris directly above where his heart should be.

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Chris (**_**again)**_** …**_**o~O**_

"Apparently it worked like a defibrillator, and restarted your heart, because you started breathing again immediately. Leo hurriedly healed you before the effects could wear off. And that's the story," Wyatt finished.

I sat down heavily on a rock. "Wow. So, wait, Leo knows who we are?" I asked suddenly, panicking.

Surprising me, Wyatt smirked. "Nope. I took care of that…"

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Wyatt (**_**again)**_** …**_**o~O**_

Once the last of the blood retreated into Chris's chest, and the last of the color returned to his face, I realized I still had to take care of one final loose end.

"Hypocrite,  
know not of  
your two sons."

"What was that-" Dad started before a wave of green light swept over him. Instantly, his entire demeanor changed.

"Alright. I healed Chris. Now explain why!" he demanded.

Shaking my head, I replied, "Nah, I don't think I will."

He opened his mouth to retort, but I waved my hand, and he orbed back to P3.

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Chris …**_**o~O**_

"A senryu? You used a senryu to make him forget who we were? Are you _kidding _me?" I said incredulously.

"Hey! I used a haiku to get here!" he defended. "I've decided to try and test different poetry types. I think I'll use a cinquain next."

"A cinquain? How do you plan to do that?" I asked.

Smirking, he replied, "You'll see. Now then, where were we? Oh, yes. WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOU?"

That's when I remembered a more pressing problem. "Look, I'll tell you in a minute. First off, I have to go save your little ass from some demons. Okay? Good?"

I orbed away before he could say anything else.

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Paige's PoV …**_**o~O**_

"Hey! Leo! Where were you?" I asked the moment he orbed into view.

"Yeah! We've been waiting here for like, five minutes," Phoebe chimed in.

"Well, this man orbed in and grabbed me, then made me heal Chris before orbing me back here. It was… rather odd to tell you the truth. I actually can't remember half of it… In fact, I feel like I _should _be remembering something… something important, but I just can't! Heck, I can't even remember what the dude looked like!" he exclaimed.

"So, wait, Chris is healed?" I asked, pretty much shoving the rest of what he said into my subconscious.

He nodded.

"Okay, then. Let's go back to the manor so we can tell Piper she isn't going to jail, and then we can save Wyatt," I said, grabbing Phoebe's hand and orbing back to the manor.

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Piper's PoV …**_**o~O**_

I had been beating myself up for the last ten minutes, wondering where my sisters were, and what the hell was taking them so long. Wondering if Chris was dead, if Wyatt was alright, and what the bloody _hell_ made me act like that.

I mean, seriously! I didn't want to blow the kid up! Why on _Earth _had my powers malfunctioned like that? Was it because I was so pissed? They don't usually act on their own will just because I'm pissed…

I'd have to ask Leo about it when he and my sisters got back. Whenever that was…

With a heavy sigh, I flipped through the book again, trying to find the Order, see if there was anything else that could be done.

Finally, they orbed back. "Is he okay?" I asked immediately. "I didn't mean to hurt him. I have no idea what happened. One second, I was on the verge of being royally pissed, the next, I just snapped!"

"He's fine, Piper," Leo soothed. "I healed him. Although, there was this strange man there that sort of attacked me and made me heal him. It was… rather odd, to say the least."

"Hmm… that's weird. We saw this weirdo blonde guy on the bridge, and he orbed away with Chris. I'm just spit-balling here, but do you think he could be the same person?" Paige asked.

Leo shrugged, "I don't know, maybe…"

"Okay, then! Can we go save my son now?" I reminded.

"OF COURSE!" Phoebe exclaimed. "Paige, come on, orb!"

"On it!" she replied, grabbing our hands.

* * *

_**O~o… **_**Phoebe's PoV …**_**o~O**_

We reemerged in a cave filled with demons. One of them was holding Wyatt and chanting some weird spell.

"HEY! YOU! GIVE ME BACK MY SON!" Piper screeched, blowing up the nearest demon.

And so it commenced. Piper blew up everything in sight, Paige orbed thrown energy balls back at the demons, and I kicked ass the good old fashioned way.

It only took about five seconds to eliminate most of the demons in the room. Soon, there was only the one holding Wyatt… but he was protected by the shield.

"You are too late! He protects me now!" the demon gloated, making a fireball in his hand.

Piper lifted her hands, ready to freeze, when it hit me. For the second time today, I felt extreme emotional pain. This time, however, I didn't let it affect me. I maintained a stony expression.

This time, however, I knew exactly who that heart-wrenching pain belonged to. Looking up, I saw him. His orbs appeared, and he tackled the demon, causing the fireball to engulf the demon that created it.

Without looking away from the toddler, he commanded, "Pick up the scepter, and point it at Wyatt."

Paige did as he said. I noticed that Piper was slowly backing away.

A beam shot out of the wand, and went right into Wyatt's eyes. His shield went down. Piper immediately rushed forward and picked him up.

Chris looked at me, at Paige, then at Piper.

_**O~o… **_**Chris's PoV …**_**o~O**_

I saw her. Our eyes met.

"I-" I began. But I couldn't.

I orbed.

That's when the levee broke. I swayed where I stood when I orbed back, surprising my brother, giving him no chance to be pissed at me.

"Hey? You alright? Chris?" Wyatt asked, coming over and grabbing my shoulders to steady me. I instantly grabbed his forearms, clutching them as hard as I could.

"What happened to you?" he repeated his words from earlier, but softer now. His voice was less demanding, but far more urgent.

"Well, mom… Oh, man, Wyatt… I don't know what to do- I can't go back there again… I tried… I can't. Not after what they, what she- I just… it's too much," I stuttered, shaking my head vehemently.

"What. Did. They. Do?" Wyatt growled dangerously, giving me a look that could've made a braver man than me drop dead of fear.

"I- it's not their fault. They didn't know. I mean, how was she supposed to know I wasn't trying to hurt them? She was just defending her family. She didn't- she doesn't know I'm part of it."

"Chris, look at me," Wyatt whispered darkly, looking me clear in the eye. "What did they do?"

"Mom- no, not Mom… she's Piper. Not mom…"

"Chris, you're rambling. Tell me what they did."

"She... Wyatt, I think she..." I shook my head again, trying to clear it. The concept was… impossible. Mom? Do… that? No way! "She wouldn't. She _couldn't… _could she?" I asked aloud.

"Do _what_?" Wyatt begged, staring at me in utter confusion. "CHRIS! WHAT THE HELL DID MOM DO?"

I just shook my head, trying to restrain the tears that had chosen now to reappear.

Suddenly, a look of comprehension filled his features. It was swiftly followed by a look of total horror. "Chris, did she try to ki-?"

I nodded before he could finish, the tears overflowing no matter how hard I tried to restrain them.

"She- but Chris! This is _Mom_ we're talking about! She would never do something like that, unless-"

"She thought that the person she did it to was trying to hurt her family," I finished for him as the horror on his face intensified.

"They don't trust you, do they?" Wyatt asked quietly, staring at me with… _concern? _Who are you and _what_ have you done with my psychopath brother?

"No shit, Sherlock," I replied sarcastically. "How long did it take for you to figure that out?"

He didn't seem to have it in him to be mad at me for my indignant comment. He didn't even roll his eyes, let alone smack me upside the head like he would normally have.

_Wow, I'm not that much of a mess… am I?_

I already knew the answer, but the point was proven as my body shook with a shuddering sob.

"Wy, how _could _she?" I begged my brother, as if he'd have the answer to the million-dollar question.

As predicted, he just shook his head and whispered, "I don't know, Chris. I don't know."

* * *

A/N: Sorry, but that was seriously the suckiest chapter I've written for this story. I feel like I've let myself down.

Now, then, those PoVs. They got really confusing in the beginning there, but I wanted Chris's full reaction, and to be shown everything that was happening. I also knew that it would make more sense than jumping all around. Plus, the interrupting mid-sentence was meant to make it feel more like it is in the movies - Princess Bride, for example - when mid-story/flashback, someone interrupts the story-teller, and the story-teller gets pissy.

Lots of PoVs, sucky chapter. I feel really bad right now. Hope you guys liked it anyway.

So, yeah... there's that...

On to happier matters, I had the first PoV (fondly entitled the "WTH?" part) of this written a while. A big thanks to **thunderincrimson** for helping me not totally throw this story down the toilet. It was originally going right at the tipity top of last chapter, then with no further explanation, but I half-wanted you to think I'd really decided to murder Chris.


	5. Evil Angel

**A/N: 8/18/11: Hey, this has been revised. Thought I'd let you know.**

* * *

**A/N: **Piper sounds a bit like she has multiple-personality-disorder, but she's just not 100% sure on her feelings. She keeps switching between pissed off and guilty.

* * *

Disclaimer: I own my evilness. I own a new pair of shoes. I own my computer. I own my story Motley Crew. Charmed? Well... umm... that I don't own...

* * *

_**(~) **_**Paige's PoV **_**(~)**_

"Oh my God! Did you see his eyes! He looked so hurt, and so scared. God, I don't know what to do! How on earth could I have done something like that to him?" Piper rambled the moment we orbed back to the manor.

"Piper, calm down, sweetie," Phoebe soothed, rubbing her hand up and down our sister's back. "I'm sure that there is a reasonable explanation for what caused you to blow Chris up. Like… um… Paige, can you help me here?"

"Umm," I replied, racking my brain for a suitable excuse. "Hormones gone wild?"

"Oh! Honey, do you have PMS?" Phoebe added, looking at Piper with concern.

In turn, Piper glared at her. "Do you? Either of you?"

"Uh, no… I guess not then. Hmm… maybe there was a demon!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, remember that demon Cole sent after us, back when he was still trying to kill me. The one that manipulated us to turn on each other, and use our powers on one another in order to break the power of three, and lure me to Cole so he could kill me?" Phoebe said aloud.

"Uh, no. As a matter of fact, I don't," I replied, raising my eyebrows.

"Oh, sorry Paige. That was a few years before we met you."

"Ah."

"But we vanquished that demon," Piper remembered.

"Maybe one decided to copy him. After all, it would've worked had Cole not fallen in love with me."

I felt out of the loop. _Very_ out of the loop. Ah, well. That's what happens when you're adopted, I guess.

Now, back to the real world, Paige.

"Okay, so demon cast spell on Piper that made her almost kill Chris. Great. We'll deal with that later. For now, I think we should focus on the victim that we _know_ is a victim," I summed up. Then, with a glance at Piper, I hastily added, "Uh, not that you _aren't_ a victim. It's just that Chris is a tad more of one."

"Paige, look, what happened doesn't change anything. Chris manipulated us and tried to convince us that Wyatt turns evil. We shouldn't give him any leeway in that matter, right Phoebe?" Piper reminded, looking at Phoebe for agreement.

But Phoebe didn't answer.

"Ahem, _right Phoebe?_" Piper repeated, trying to get the middle sister to look up from the spot on the ground she was staring at.

I waved my hand in front of her face and snapped until she shoved it away with an indignant look on her face.

"I'm sorry, Piper, but I can't agree with you. Chris… you didn't feel his pain. And that was through the empath blocking potion he took, so it must have been even worse!"

"What are you talking about Phoebe?" she asked, a mortified look on her face.

I had to admit, I was damn curious, too.

"Look, I know why I can't usually feel Chris. He obviously took an empath blocking potion. I kept feeling these weird emotions coming from him, like he was trying to hide something _big_ from us, until he gave you two the potion. After that, poof, I felt nothing from him. Except, when we were yelling at him, and he was trying to tell us how to save Wyatt, and then when… you know. At those moments, I felt pain worse than you can possibly understand. I felt a huge amount of grief. Immense betrayal. I felt his want to tell the truth, but also like there was something holding him back. There was a whole lot of fear mixed in there, and some other emotion that I can't quite pinpoint. It was almost overwhelming to feel all of that at once!" she tried to explain, looking at us earnestly.

"Wait, so _he _felt betrayed? Even after _he_ betrayed _us_?" I asked confusedly.

She nodded. "I think he honestly was just trying to protect Wyatt. He just screwed up. Big time."

"And he wanted to tell the truth, but couldn't? What do you mean by that?" Piper inquired.

Phoebe shook her head. "I-I don't know. It didn't make sense. The best example I can give is our secret. You know how you get when someone that's close to you starts not trusting you because of all the 'family emergencies'? And how you know that if they knew the truth, they wouldn't be acting that way?"

Piper and I nodded. I knew only too well. It got _so_ annoying sometimes.

"Well, that was what he felt like. It was like, had we known this key piece of information, we wouldn't be treating him so badly."

"Great, Phoebe. Now I feel like a _great person_," I said sarcastically, feeling overtly guilt-ridden.

"Believe me, Paige, I know exactly how you feel," Piper instantly replied.

Phoebe nodded in agreement. "I didn't say anything at the time because I couldn't quite figure it out. I don't know what we're going to do with this information. All that it's telling us is that he _is _keeping a secret from us, only it's not because he's trying to convince us he's not evil, but because… I have no idea why!"

"It's almost as if he wants us to think he's evil," I muttered, shaking my head.

Phoebe cocked hers. "Suicide by Charmed Ones?"

"No, he would've just flat out attacked us if that were the case," Piper disqualified. "He's got to have a good reason for this. I just don't know what it is!"

"We'll find out," I insisted, patting her on the back awkwardly.

* * *

_**(~) **_**Wyatt's PoV **_**(~)**_

"Wyatt, don't," Chris said tenaciously. "I refuse to let you. If you do, I will _not _be here when you get back."

"Where will you go?" I sneered back. "You know full well that, right now, I'm the only one who has a place for you. 'Sides, I'll find you if I have to."

"Not if I block you! Because you are _not_ going after them."

"It's not like I'm going to kill them!" I whined. "I'm just gonna, you know, make them wish they _were_ dead. I won't even reveal our identities. How about that?"

Chris narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "No, Wyatt. I'm not letting you do this."

"Sorry, Chris," I said quickly, throwing the sleeping potion at him before he could orb away. "It was for your own good."

"Hate… you…" Chris slurred before collapsing on the ground.

I smirked, evil thoughts already floating through my mind. "Love you too, bro. Now, to make Mumsy, Popsicle, and Aunties pay for their crimes against the little bwuthah…"

I orbed away, sadistic grin planted on my face.

* * *

_**(~) **_**Phoebe's PoV **_**(~)**_

Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. One second, things were fine, the next, it was like a switch had flipped.

"Guys, did you sense that?" I asked.

I didn't get an answer.

Right then, dark orbs appeared right between us, coalescing to form the man we saw on the bridge.

"Blondie!" Paige exclaimed. I would've face-palmed if I hadn't been an empath.

What about being an empath stopped me from showing my indignation, you ask? Well, maybe the fact that "Blondie" was exuding some serious vengeful motives.

"What are you doing here?" I asked furiously, bracing my feet on the ground.

"No reason. Just decided to teach you guys not to mess with a certain witchlighter," he said with a sadistic looking grin.

Piper lifted her hands to blow him up, but he twitched his fingers and suddenly she was across the room.

"Piper!" Paige yelled and ran over to her. I stayed stock still. What I was sensing made _no_ sense. He seemed slightly… guilty. But, that couldn't be, could it?

"Okay… um… cinquain… got it!" he muttered, before reciting aloud,

_"Chris  
Brave, wounded  
Hurting, grieving, shuddering  
You made his pain  
Brother."_

He paused, waiting for something to happen.

Nothing happened.

"Uh, was that supposed to do something?" Paige asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, it _was_, but I guess cinquains aren't spell worthy. Ah, well, good thing I've got a backup plan!" he exclaimed.

"_For he who I care about most  
Let these stupid hypocrites host  
His memories which he feels the most despair  
But our identities, they will not share."_

"COME ON! If you're gonna cast a spell on us, at least quit guarding your identities! Is it really that big of a deal?" Paige whined, but I cast her a look that clearly said _shut up_.

"What did you do to us? Where's Chris? What's going on here? Who are you?" I demanded.

Sneering, the man replied, "You'll see soon enough. Safe, from _you_. It's coming up. And that is a secret I can't tell you."

"You know, this whole 'future consequences' crap got annoying _months _ago," Piper growled, glaring at the man as she stood up.

He looked at her incredulously. "Dude, seriously, _future consequences?_ I'm about to take you on a video tour of Chrissy-poo's childhood, and you are accusing me of _future consequences?_ Wow, looks like Chris really hasn't changed. Always finds an excuse to keep quiet. Then again, the identity part is a tad more important than you are allowed to realize," he muttered.

"Can't you at least tell us your name?" Paige asked. "I honestly don't believe you like being called "Blondie"? So, even a nickname would work!"

"Fine," he mumbled. "It's W- Matt."

"Wait, what do you mean a 'video tour'?" I asked, raising my eyebrow.

That warranted another leer. "Well, take one is about to come up. Take a look-see around why don't you? Anything changed?"

I blinked for a moment, and looked around.

He was right.

Something had changed.

"Uh, guys?" Paige spoke up hesitantly, "I think that either we've been chatting for a _long _time, or we're not in Kansas anymore…"

She was right. We were no longer in the manor.

We were in the Underworld.

* * *

_**(~) **_**Piper's PoV **_**(~)**_

"Chris's worst nightmare #3. Age 12. Underworld. He was kidnapped by a demon. Observe what happened before ou- _his_ _caring _father came, healed him, and rescued him. We skipped #s 1 and 2 for the moment. I just want to warm you up before we get to the more graphic ones. This is a demon attack. Something you guys can understand," the man – _Matt_, I corrected myself, said as an introduction.

"How do you know?" I asked harshly, glaring at him.

He rolled his eyes and looked at me as if I were an idiot. "Umm, let me think… maybe because I'm his br- _bro. _Yeah, bro. And best friend since diapers. Point is, I had already known him for his entire life at this point. We lived really near each other, and were best friends, so… yeah," he rambled. He shook his head, and continued, "But this is about Chris, not the both of us. So, observe. This is nightmare land for your precious whitelighter. The one you blew up. Gosh, I can just think of all the years of therapy that just went down the tubes because of what you did."

I felt a swirl of guilt rise in my heart, but I pushed it down and did as he asked, watching the scene before me.

There, a boy, about as old as Matt had said, hung by his wrists. His face was made nearly unrecognizable by dirt, grime, and… _blood?_

Nearly.

I could still, despite a decade's age difference, recognize him.

"Oh my God! Chris!" Phoebe exclaimed, running over to him, but passing right through.

"Hey, dipshit, it's a video tour. You've stepped foot in a memory. You can't affect it. You've just gotta watch. This is one of his better ones, believe you me. That kid was tortured to Hell and back, quite literally."

"Already? But he's so young!" I exclaimed, silently scolding myself for worrying about him. Stupid maternal instincts.

"As I said, this is one of his better ones," Matt said solemnly. "He's had worse than this. His worst injuries are to come, though. I swear, of all the years I've known him… before this, I had never truly seen a demon's true evil. I think you need a little back story though."

The whole scene seemed to pause.

"How'd you do that?" Paige asked, staring at him.

"Easy, I've pretty much got the remote on this thing," Matt replied, smirking and tapping his head with a finger. "Anyway, that back story. Well, Chris comes from a pretty important family of witches. They're a real threat. So, being a kid, he's usually the blackmail and hostage situation of the family. A fact that makes Chris feel useless, even though he's one of the most powerful witches ever. So, in this case, his family had whacked this particularly twisted demon's son. So, you know, equivalent exchange, I guess."

His voice might have cracked at the end, but the tears in his eyes could just be a trick of the light.

"But, obviously, they didn't succeed," Phoebe pointed out. "I mean, he's here now, isn't he?"

"Well, they came pretty damn close. Just- just watch it," he whispered.

The scene started up again.

An evil laugh rang through the air. Chris blinked rapidly as if he couldn't see clearly.

Coughing, he said weakly, -_too _weakly, in my opinion- "Dude, what the hell do you want with me?"

The demon revealed itself, grinning evilly. "Easy. Your mother killed my son. An eye for an eye, a son for a son. It's quite simple actually," she replied, cocking her head.

Her nails extended, sharpening into metal blades. Chris's frightened eyes reflected on them as she approached.

"But- but I didn't do anything! I haven't killed a demon! I haven't even banished a ghost! You can't-!" he exclaimed, looking at her pleadingly.

Her grin never faltered.

"My son never killed an innocent. But your mother didn't care about that, did she? Why should I?"

She took a single bladed nail and ran it across Chris's already bleeding face, grinning ever-wider, as he yelled for help.

I could tell by the tormented look on Matt's face that no one responded.

* * *

A/N: You know how I said I am an Evil Author and that Chris was going to be put through the mill? Well, um, this is step 1...

We won't be seeing much of current Chris for a little while. He won't come to until after our little trip down memory lane ends. However, angsty kid Chris? Lots of him.

And Matthew is Wyatt's middle name, so... yeah.

Also, I keep having him have to correct himself because, judging by the "Uncle Coop" incident, he's not exactly the best secret keeper.

I also believe that he and future good Wyatt are essentially the same person, just with different morals. So, that trait would stay.

Have fun! Expect a mean chapter soon!


	6. Torturous Tandem

**A/N: 8/18/11- Hey! This has been revised! So, I'm pretty close to finished with the revision process. Hope you all are having a good summer! A new chapter should be written relatively soon. I just have to finish revising. :D**

* * *

**-Paige's PoV-**

His scream echoed in my ears, and I had a terrible feeling that I knew what was coming. I knew demons. I knew what they were like. And I knew people. I was a social worker. I knew that look people got when a close friend or relative went through a particularly nasty ordeal. When it got too close.

I knew that haunted look a child would get in their eye when their mom didn't come home from work. I knew the lost look a son would get when his father didn't come back again.

I also knew the hopeless, distraught look an older sibling would get when they "failed" their younger sibling.

That was the look I recognized in Matt's eyes as the scene played out, but I pried myself away from that mystery, and focused on Chris.

The woman had stepped away from him, and now paced around the room.

"My son, Gelvin, was a rather good lad. He always killed the correct amount of animals. Never shirked his responsibilities. Your mother killed him just before he got his first innocent. Just like I'll get you before you kill your first demon."

"My parents will come. And _! My big brother! He'll get you too!" Chris screamed in a sudden burst of energy.

"Uh, did it just bleep out a name?" I asked, looking at Matt curiously.

"Looks like the spell is doing its job," he replied with a half-hearted smile. "It's preserving his identity. Cool."

I was just about to quip back when the demon prowled over to Chris and made an identical cut on his other cheek. "I'd watch your mouth, boy," she hissed. "I could make your death quick, painless. Or, I could make you scream and writhe in agony. Your choice."

In typical Chris response, he spat on her.

It happened in an instant. Her hand gripped his face, nails digging into skin.

"Bad move, boy," she snarled. "Bad move."

* * *

**-Leo's Point of View-**

"Uh, guys? Where are you? Piper? Phoebe? Paige?" I asked, walking down the stairs after I put Wyatt in his crib for a nap after the day's events.

No one was downstairs. I sensed for them, and found them to be at P3. Probably doing some inventory or booking the next band.

_Damn it! They ditched me! AGAIN!_

"Hello?" an absurdly Latino accented voice called down the stairs. "Where are the girls?"

_And left me with HIM?_

I ran a hand over my face and cursed.

* * *

**-Phoebe's Point of View-**

"What are you doing?" Chris demanded, staring defiantly at the demon's back. She was near a table, shuffling through various herbs, potion ingredients, and things I wasn't sure I wanted to know what were.

"I'm about to make your death a tad more painful than it already was going to be," she replied perkily, a drastic change from how she had been acting before.

"It's never going to work," he said again, making me shake my head. _Will Chris ever learn when to not be sarcastic?_

I felt a flash of pride coming from Matt, but there was a whole lot of grief and despair there too. It worried me, because no one felt that much crap after just a torture session. Something was going to happen, something bad.

_But he still gets saved, right?_ I asked myself. _He's here in the future, as an adult, of course he gets saved!_

Shaking my head, I returned my focus on the scene before me.

The demon smirked and picked up a vial filled with some strange lilac colored potion. She added a small pinch of a dust-like substance, tapped the sides, and it instantly turned blood red.

"Do you know what this is, boy?" she asked calmly, walking over to him.

"Your lunch?" he replied cockily, but I saw his eyes widen.

"It is called Mortenuserum. It is a slow-working poison that hinders a white-lighter's healing power. The power still works, but it takes a few moments longer. A few crucial moments longer. Moments in which a victim with bad enough injuries could die."

"_And?_" he asked, though he was trembling under her gaze.

"And, those moments will definitely be crucial when I send you back," she replied, grinning at him toothily.

He seemed terrified for the smallest of seconds before the mask of bravery came back. "They'll find me first. I know it. They'll find me, and vanquish you. You'll be stuck in the wasteland where you belong! If you're lucky and we don't find somewhere worse!"

"Hmm, well I'll just have to make our time together worth something, won't I?" she crooned evilly, prying open Chris's mouth and shoving the potion down it.

* * *

**-Piper's Point of View-**

Suddenly, everything froze. I looked to Paige, Phoebe, and finally Matt. "Why'd you press pause?" I asked.

"I'd rather not have to relive that," he admitted sheepishly. "I wasn't there at the time, but I later took a trek down memory lane, and saw what happened. I may be pissed with you, but you don't deserve to see quite _what_ she did. The after effects were bad enough. Let's just fast forward to the end of this little ordeal, shall we? It's bad enough, anyway…"

"Uh, okay," I replied, raising an eyebrow.

Suddenly, the scene changed. The demon was on the other side of the room, polishing a… _darklighter arrow?_ Chris was… well, he wasn't in good shape. He was officially _covered_ in blood. His face was extremely pale. His hair fell in limp, bloody strands over his face. Worst of all, though, was his spirit. That air of confidence and bravery was missing.

It appeared to be hours later, if not days.

And his family had still not arrived to save him.

No wonder the poor kid was disheartened!

The demon approached him eagerly, smile growing with each passing step. "I really enjoyed our time together, but it's been almost a week now, and your family still hasn't arrived, now have they? Looks like you aren't very important to them. But, you already suspected that, didn't you?"

"A _week_?" I mimed uselessly. How could it have taken so long? How could he possibly have survived that long. I glanced at my sisters and saw similar looks of shock. The look on Matt's face gave me pause… _guilt. _Pure _guilt_.

His eyes clenched shut, and I could just make out a tear washing some of the blood from his face.

"Any last words before I put you out of your misery?" she asked perkily, tossing the arrow from one hand to the other.

"Dad," he choked out, a prayer that _couldn't_ go unanswered.

"Well that's unoriginal. Oh, well."

And, with a fluid motion of her fingers, a she plunged the arrow into his throat.

Gasps went up all around.

"Oh my God!" Paige exclaimed.

"Chris!" Phoebe screamed.

I just gaped, open mouthed, as Chris's eyes opened in terror. His mouth gaped like a goldfish before blood started spilling out. He was still trying to breathe, even with the hole in his air pipes.

I stared in shock as his breath became harsher, and harsher, and harsher still. Shallow, choking noises emerged from him, and I wondered, not for the first time, what the hell kind of assholes his family were to not have found him by now.

Suddenly, the demon screamed in agony and erupted into flames. A woman walked into the room, but I didn't recognize her. Although, there was something very familiar about her…

"Chris?" she called. Then she caught sight of him. "CHRIS!"

He just coughed up more blood, and struggled to breathe even harder, knowing that help had finally arrived.

She ran over, and untied his arms, cradling him in her arms. "_! _, GET OVER HERE NOW!" she shrieked.

I wanted to comment about the bleep, but I didn't.

"It's okay, baby, it's okay. Daddy will be here soon. He'll save you. God, _ get down here! PLEASE! CHRIS IS… CHRIS IS DYING!" she sobbed, holding her child tight.

Suddenly, his chokes got worse, more distressed, more shallow. More blood came up, even though it hardly seemed possible. His eyes looked around frantically as he rasped for breath that couldn't come.

"Don't talk, Chris. Please, just breathe. Focus on that for me, okay. Breathe," she whispered, trying desperately to stop the bleeding on his neck with her shirt.

To his mother's begging chorus of "no", his breath worsened and worsened, and became more and more frantic. Then, finally, in one huge, bloody rasp, it stopped all together. His head fell limply back, and his whole body became still.

Just then, blue orbs appeared.

* * *

**A/N**: Sorry for the shortie, but I just couldn't write anymore. I also didn't feel like torturing Chris anymore. 'Sides, I'm getting just a tad bored with the whole "torturing Chris" plotline. I've got a lot of things coming up in real life, so it might be a little while before I can get back. Blame school. :P

Oh, and if you want some visual reference for the arrow in Chris's throat, I completely ripped off Lost. There's an episode where Desmond's flash of Charlie is seen right in the beginning, and Charlie trips a wire that sets of a bow and arrow, that hits him in the neck. I pretty much put the situation right here. It's in Season 3. Poor Charlie... another to add to the list of faves that bit the dust... :_(

Wanna cheer me up? Get me to write more? REVIEW!

Once again,

REVIEW!


	7. Breath of Life

A/N: OOOH! GUESS WHAT! I CHANGED MY PENNAME!

To one that wasn't on the poll... I'm sorry. I was just chattin' with a pal, got called this, and... well... I like it. A lot. And doesn't it suit me? I mean, SERIOUSLY!

Anyway, is it okay if I take a five-minute breather from this? I have someone bugging me about another angst-tragic-deathfic I'm working on - Le Morte De Raimundo - that I haven't updated in... well, a while. I need to put some serious time and effort into it, but I know EXACTLY what's going to happen, so I can probably pump it out in a few weeks... then I'll get right back here! :D

In the meantime, can you guys do me a favor and bug this writer named NextGeneration about her story, Dead Promises.

It's basically this... just way better. I read it yesterday. It hasn't been updated in 8 MONTHS. No, scratch that, OVER 8 MONTHS! GAH! So, while I take a break from this, all of you excellent reviewers, GO REVIEW! It is SUCH a great story. You guys would probably all love it. It's in my favorites, check it out! (And kindly suggest her to update. Seriously.)

Ahem... enough about someone else's story. And onto this one. I know you guys know I can't kill Chris... but I do my best. JK! Well, maybe not so much, but... ah well. Read the dang story...

DISCLAIMER: I own a mechanical pencil. I own a Helpful Mander named Bill on Wizard 101. I own my big toe. I don't own my soul... my best friend sold it on the black market. To a dragon. Then again, the dragon _did _throw it up... so is it mine again? I know my liver isn't... my best friend sold _that_ to a few French Chefs. They had twirly mustaches, hairy armpits, and wore muscle shirts.

Oh, yeah, and I don't own Charmed either.

* * *

"PAUSE IT! PAUSE IT! PAUSE IT!" Piper exclaimed.

With a nod, Matt did as he was asked.

"Why?" I asked angrily. "We need to find out how they fix this!"

"Paige, he's _dead!_ The demon killed him! It was a darklighter arrow, she poisoned him with that stuff that postpones healing, and he's already _dead!_ Matt. Answers. Now. He obviously doesn't die here, but _tell us how_!"

Matt started to say, "Well, why don't you just watch the frigging memory and-"

"No! Tell us right now!" Piper shrieked, glaring at him viciously.

"Piper, we're going to see in a minute, why don't we just-" Phoebe started, but Piper shrugged her off too.

I couldn't figure out why she was freaking out so much. I mean, sure, Chris was dead – for the moment – but we know he lives. Plus, we're supposed to be tweaked with him. So, why was she flipping out?

"No, no, no!" Piper exclaimed, "I can't watch this anymore. He's twelve years old, and he was being tortured. He got an arrow through the throat at age _twelve_. What is wrong with these demons! I didn't think they'd stoop so low. How does he get out of this? Tell me, right now!"

Matt smirked half-heartedly, not-so-witty quip obviously prepared, but I beat him to the punch. "Let's just see. It's obvious that Matt here doesn't want to relive it either, so think of it as torture for _him_."

"HEY!"

"I-I guess that'll work," Piper admitted, shakily glancing back at the frozen image.

"HEY!"

"Okay, just put it back on. Let's get it over with," Phoebe declared, putting an arm around her sister, and making me feel effectively out of the loop. As usual.

Everything restarted.

* * *

The orbs coalesced into… Matt. Well that was a surprise.

"OH MY GOD! CHRIS!" He screamed, running over to his friend, eyes welling up with tears. "What happened?" he cried.

"I was scrying for him, and suddenly it worked. In less than a second, I used that spell I've been saving to find him. When I got here, I vanquished that bitch that had kidnapped him and found him… like this."

Young Matt shook his head in disbelief, trying desperately to heal him before crying, "_! We need you! Please, _! Chris needs you!"

Instantly, more orbs appeared, this time forming into another unfamiliar person, this time a man. He stared in shock at the woman, Young Matt, and finally Chris.

"YOU!" Chris's mother screamed, looking tearfully up from her son. "WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG? WHY DIDN'T YOU COME? WHY?"

She was in hysterics as she looked at Chris, then at his father, before collapsing into sobs over his body.

"Chris… is he..? He can't be…?" the man asked in terror.

"HEAL HIM NOW!" she shrieked. Then, sweeter, she pleaded, "Hold on, baby, please. Just hold out for Daddy. I have to pull out the arrow now, honey."

She carefully pulled the arrow out, which incited no reaction from Chris.

Even though it was years later, I could still feel Matt's pain at having to go through it all. Empath, remember?

Young Matt dejectedly grabbed Chris's hand, a miserable shudder passing over his shoulders.

I had to choke back a sob at the scene. It was so depressing! There was no way this could have a happy ending, even if the man _did _heal Chris.

The man tearfully held his hands out, and let the golden light appear.

After a few seconds during which nothing had happened, they exchanged a distraught look.

A few seconds later, the woman was shaking her head vehemently, and mouthing no.

A few seconds later, the man's face became steely as his hands sunk closer to the wound, the golden light deepening.

A few seconds later, the woman had looked away from her son as tears streamed down her cheeks.

A full minute later, and the man had pretty much shoved the woman out of the way as he healed, trying harder, healing with all his might.

"NO!" he bellowed, finally letting his tears fall. "Chris – no! I won't- you can't die on me, Chris. You can't!"

He put his hands flat on Chris's chest and just let the healing energy flow.

"Help me here!" he screamed at Young Matt, who nodded and grabbed the man's hand, holding the other over Chris. A few more moments passed before suddenly, miraculously, Chris took a shallow, bloody breath.

Instantly, his father's hands shot up to his neck. The wound finally started to heal, and Chris's eyes shot open, widening in shock and pain.

Younger Matt gasped in shock and relief, burying his head in Chris's chest as he finally let himself sob.

His mother was at his side in an instant, his head in her lap, her hand clutching his free one as if it were all that mattered in this world.

Which, to her, it probably was.

* * *

"Woah… dude… that was…" Paige struggled, trying to find the right words.

Phoebe nodded empathetically, but I just stared at the family that had been reunited.

It had been so horrible to watch it, but how had it affected Chris? I mean, he was the one who had _died_, albeit briefly. He had been tortured for _days_, and was nearly killed for something his mother did.

Was that why he was so determined on killing demons all the time in _our _time? Was it to prevent more things like this happening?

In that moment I made a silent vow to track down that creature, and kill her before she had a chance to cause that family so much grief.

* * *

"Well, now that that's over with," I began, rubbing my hands together. "I'll give you a run through of what happened next."

Living that had been torture. I could still remember what I saw when I orbed in that day. That was what made me truly want to lead the world and become the ruler of demons, so they wouldn't hurt anyone else.

But, I digress.

"Chris's dad, umm, _Louie_, actually started paying attention to Chris, worried about him, and, you'll never believe this one, _CARED._ GASP!"

"Huh?" Paige asked in confusion.

Phoebe elbowed her in frustration. "Come on, you didn't see that? Chris's dad, Louie, was obviously not coming for Chris because he was one of those horrible neglectful fathers. I'm guessing that the reason he came when Matt here called him is because he probably favored you, right?"

I raised my eyebrows at my usually ditzy aunt's perception and nodded.

She shook her head in disbelief. "No wonder he hates Leo so much." I almost opened my mouth to ask how she knew (and threaten her) but she beat me to the punch. "He probably reminds Chris of his own father, seeing as Leo's pretty much ditched us for the elders. Poor Chris…"

"Uh, yeah, let's just go with that," I muttered, before continuing. "Anyway, it didn't really last long, because two years later, the woman's sister murdered his mother, erm, _Paula._ Of course, then she blamed it on m- er, Wyatt, to turn Chris against m- I mean him. We were also pals with him. All three of us. Close. Umm, yeah, that's it. Umm… so, yeah, about then is when he became Leader of the Underworld, but to protect Chris and everyone else from crap like this happening again."

Mom's eyebrows shot way up on her face when something occurred to me. "Wait, didn't Chris tell you?"

"Yeah, he tried to," Paige whispered solemnly.

"Oh! So that's when you fucking blew his chest to bits. Ah, I see," I said, a sick feeling of comprehension filling my head. "He told you the truth for the first time, like _ever_, and you blow him up. Wow, that really _is_ years of therapy down the toilet. Seriously, do you guys even _want_ to know how much it took for him to actually recover from this? There's a damn good reason why I skipped through it."

"We didn't-" Phoebe tried to defend her sister, but I interrupted.

Because _**no one**_ interrupts _me_ mid-rant.

"Uh, uh. Put a sock in it, Pixie Cut. Wanna know what that _bitch_ did to him? She was a shape-shifter. She kept turning into several friends and family members of his, and… well, we still haven't gotten the full details on what she actually did to him. How would you feel if you had been tortured for a week and suddenly, you heard your mother's voice calling for you? Then, how would you feel when she plunged a knife into your gut and cackled maniacally, transforming back into her demonic form? That's only one horror story we got from him. And he was in there for two _months._"

"_Months!"_ Paige exclaimed in horror. "But, he was friends with Wyatt, right? Wouldn't _we _try like hell to get him back? How could we let this happen?"

I laughed bitterly. _If they only knew the truth, they'd feel so much worse._

"So, what's next on the video tour?" I asked, wondering if I could do a 'Scene Selection' type thing.

It worked! Score 1 for the Twice-Blessed! W00T!

* * *

"What the…?" I mumbled looking around in confusion.

We were literally standing in the middle of something right out of the Scene Selection page on a DVD.

All around us, there were little rectangles filled with horrible scenes. They ranged from a tearful 8 year old Chris staring in disbelief at his father, to a sobbing teenage girl, holding a younger, blood-soaked Chris in her arms, to a fifteen year old Chris glaring at Matt, and much, much more. It astonished me, not because of the content, but because of how _many_ there were. Underneath each was cursive writing, saying what year it was.

"Uh, Piper, are you seeing this?" I asked the eldest of my sisters, raising an eyebrow.

"If you are referring to the scene selection brought right out of a horror movie, starring our pal Chris, then yes. I am," she replied dazedly, looking around in bewilderment.

"You, Phoebe?"

"Uh huh. Definitely. There's no missing it," she answered. Her brow furrowed as she added, "How did he survive getting, well, _killed_ so much?"

"'tis simple. My br-_bestie_ is one tough cookie," Matt answered, even though the question was rhetorical.

"Why is he yelling at you in this picture? And why are your hands bloody?" I asked, looking at one that was from about... 20 years from now. Hmph.

His eyes went wide as he saw the one I was referring to. It disappeared in a puff of smoke. "Uh, that wasn't meant to be up here…"

"What is the point of this… thing anyway?" Piper asked, raising her eyebrows.

Matt rolled his eyes, saying, "Uh, isn't it obvious? I'm letting you pick! These are a few of Chris's suck-assiest memories. Pick one."

"_WHAT?_" I asked, furrowing my brow. "What do you mean _pick one?_"

"Uh, duh? Pick one. A memory. Then we watch it. Then you cry. Then I am all like HA, betcha feel shitty now, don't'cha? Then, after a few memories, once you feel sufficiently shitty, I'll let you go home and plead for forgiveness. It's pretty dang simple, don't ya think?" he explained.

That wouldn't have been at all remarkable, except for the fact that he did it all in one breath. Yeah. It takes talent to be so stupid so quickly. I should know…

"Okay, Paigey-pop. You first! Pick one! PICK! PICK! PICK! PICK! PICK!" he said. I would have commented on 'Paigey-pop, but I decided against it, due to the fact that he was still continuing to say "PICK!" in a sing song voice, effectively driving me bonkers.

I randomly pointed at one, closing my eyes. "Okay! Ya happy?"

He looked at the one I was pointing at, grinning sadistically. "Yes," he said perkily. "Very happy. This one… well, it's another torture episode. But this time, someone awfully close to him gets the short end of the stick."

"Paige!" Phoebe growled, nudging me angrily.

"Oh, don't worry though, it's a brief memory. Not much to see. It all happens on Chris's fourteenth birthday…"

* * *

A/N: Haha, Wyatt. Seriously, I love making Wyatt a dumbass. But only when he's evil. And I have a very good reason.

-Puts on glasses, and folds hands on desk professionally, pursing lips, and looking at you over the rims of glasses-

Well, because he was kidnapped and nearly killed as a child by a trusted person, he was locked in childhood. He never came out of it. He remained with child-like innocence for the rest of his life. Just because he had child-like innocence, however, does NOT mean that he never did anything wrong. It just meant that he didn't REALIZE he was doing wrong. He never matured. He never found the ability to separate good and evil, so he just assumed that there was no good or evil. Then, he realized that evil has more power and freedom, so he had no inhibitions when he went ahead and used it.

End of psychoanalysis.

Now, the PoVs. Oh, and can I stop putting these? I mean, does anyone need them, or are they just a waste of screen?

Paige

Phoebe

Wyatt

Piper

Paige


	8. Holding by a Thread

A/N: Dudes, I just wanted to tell you how extraordinarily great you were! I mean, 89 reviews? Holy crap! The most I ever hoped for was 10, maybe 11! I have this other story, AAR, which I think is infinitely better than this, that has the same number of chapters that I had before I published this (7). It only has 27 reviews. The last chapter I published of it, the best one so far, actually, had only one review, so I got kinda disheartened and stopped writing it. Even though that chapter was the turning point that makes it so much more fun... Ah well, if anyone likes Animorphs, can you check it out?

Now, that out of my way: HOLY CRAP! I have, like, 90 reviews! It's sooo close to 100! So, guys, let's do that, okay? I promise an extra long chapter if we can get to 100 reviews. Can you do that for me? This chapter is 2,210 words. If we reach 100 (that's just 10 reviews, people) I'll see if I can make a 4,000 word one. Okay? Got it? You got that? Good!

Disclaimer: Me Cliffy-Queen. Me no own Charmed. Me sad. Me go beat brain out with rock.

* * *

As we were catapulted into the memory, three things popped out at me.

The first thing I noticed was the wrecked living room. The way the couch was on fire. The way the pictures were torn to shreds.

The second thing I noticed was the silence. Unlike the other memories, I couldn't hear a thing.

The third thing I noticed was the body on the ground.

It was a young boy's. Middle-school age. 13, possibly 14.

It took me a moment to recognize him. It was Chris.

And he had an athame sticking out of his gut.

A little ways away a woman stood, I her recognized from the last memory as his mother. She wasn't in the best of condition. She had scratches, bruises, and burn marks all over her body.

But she was actually conscious. Such could not be said of Chris.

I wondered why she was just standing there and not calling for her husband. If it had been Wyatt that was… like that, I would've called Leo and blown whatever had done it three ways from Hell.

That's when I noticed the demon. It was another female one, and she bore a striking resemblance to the one from the last memory.

"Matt… is that the same dem-?" Paige began to ask, but Matt interrupted her.

"No. That's the bitch's sister," he growled, eyes narrowing dangerously.

She laughed happily, spinning around, and causing the blood that was still on her hands to splatter.

"Well, then," she chirped gleefully. "Looks like my work here is nearly done. Now I just have to wait for your sonny to die, don't I, _witch_?"

She skipped over the bleeding boy, grabbing his shirt collar, and dragging him harshly over to his mother. He didn't even stir.

"Chris!" she shouted weakly. "Stop it! He didn't do anything! Please, _please," _she cried.

The demon rolled her eyes, and replied, "Did my nephew do anything? What about my sister?"

"Your _nephew_ was about to murder a whole family of innocents! He had already killed one of them, and had seriously injured two of them!" the woman retorted. "And your sister almost killed _him!_ Don't play that game with me. L-"

"Do you really want to call for your husband?" the demon interrupted, conjuring an energy ball, and holding it next to Chris's head. "Because there's no way he'd be able to come in time to save Chrissie here."

"Why are you doing this?" she whispered, looking at the demon pleadingly.

The demon laughed hysterically. "Are you serious? Demon, remember? It's kind of in the job description. Is that blood loss messing with your head? Oh! Right!" she added satisfactorily.

"Leave my son alone! He did _nothing_. I'm the one that killed your sister and nephew. It was _me,_" she pleaded.

The demon smirked and replied, "Exactly. So now, you can feel her pain. Then _your_ sisters can feel mine."

That was when Chris started to regain consciousness.

* * *

"M-mom?" a small voice murmured weakly. My eyes fell upon Chris, whose eyes were finally starting to flutter open.

"Chris!" his mother (what was her name? Paula?) exclaimed, "Chris, Mommy's here, just hold on. Please let me call my husband! Please!"

"Hmm, let me think…" the demon said, "Nope!"

"Mom, it hurts," Chris murmured, oblivious to… well everything.

"Honey, I'll get you out of this, just hang on," Paula urged her son. "You know what, bitch, why don't you pick on someone your own size. It's kind of pathetic, don't you think? Attacking a kid?"

"Well, no, actually. Especially when that kid is the son of a _ _ and his brother is the _ _. So, no. I really don't think it's at all pathetic."

"You do know that we'll just kill you."

"Not before I kill you."

"Umm…"

"Look," the demon interrupted. "Your concern for your son is touching, but he's going to die. And so are you. I really hate to break this to you, but it's a fact. I won't be swayed, and Chris is bleeding out. I hope you enjoy your last moments together, but I've really got to jet, so…"

Trailing off, she threw Chris at his mother, and then threw an energy ball at her while she was distracted. It hit her right in the chest, throwing both her and Chris into the grandfather clock.

"Toodles!" she exclaimed, glancing happily around at the carnage she had caused, and shimmered away.

I could feel the hatred bubbling off of Matt. Hatred I didn't really understand. I mean, sure, the demon had injured his best friend, but I didn't get how that pissed him off so much.

"Uhh… dude? What's eating at you? I can literally _feel_ the hatred you're exuding," I asked hesitantly, my curiosity getting the better of me.

He stared at me incredulously. "What's eating at me? _What's EATING at me? _What do you _think_ is eating at me? Do you see what I'm seeing? That's _Chris_ right there! And that demon that just shimmered out? She just caused his mom's death! And his mom? She was mine too… in a way. Nope. I have no reason to hate her. None what-so-freaking-ever!"

"Okay, chill pill," Paige exclaimed, putting her hands up defensively. "The woman was just asking a question. No need to go all 'testosterone' on us."

"Sorry, Paige," he murmured in dismissal, pouting like a three year old.

* * *

"Chris?" a weak voice called. Paula slowly sat up, blinking back pain. "Honey, are you okay?"

No reply.

"Chris?" she asked in a little more concern. "Chris, talk to me, sweetie. Chris!"

Tentatively looking around, she spotted him; half submerged in the rubble of yet another destroyed grandfather clock.

"CHRIS!" she screamed, scrambling over debris.

"L_! L_!" she shouted. "Oh, God, please be alright. God, please be alright."

Finally reaching him, she gently turned him over. He was deathly pale, but that was to be expected.

"Not him, please not him. Not again. God, please, not him. Don't do this to me!" she cried, pulling him onto her lap.

She put two fingers to his neck, praying, "Please have a pulse. Come on, Chris. You can do this. Just breathe…"

She sighed deeply, signaling that he did indeed have a pulse.

"L_! _! _! GET DOWN HERE! CHRIS IS HURT!" she yelled to the skies.

"M-m-mom?" Chris asked weakly, stirring slightly.

"It's alright, Chris," she whispered softly, stroking his hair. "You'll be just fine."

"You 'kay?" he slurred, clearly fighting to hold on to consciousness.

She was silent for a moment, before answering, "You'll be okay, Chris. That's all that matters."

A few moments passed, and I couldn't help but notice the fact that her face seemed awfully pale. Possibly more so than Chris's. But that didn't make any sense… did it?

I had never seen a person die of blood loss. I had never watched as a person keeled over from sheer lack of strength. During my parents' encounter with fate, I had been on the outside, having orbed out on instinct. They had died instantly. No pain. No extreme loss of blood. Instant incineration.

Therefore, it took me a while to get what was happening to the woman in front of us. And even then, I didn't figure it out until she slumped to the side, finally revealing the hole in her side that had presumably been cut when she slammed into the side of the clock.

* * *

Finally, after what seemed an eternity, the telltale signs of orbing came about, and, before they had fully formed, we heard a disgruntled voice saying, "I'm sorry honey, the Elders wouldn't let me come – OH MY GOD!" he screamed, cutting off his sentence.

He launched himself at Chris, who clearly looked worse off, and had a much larger puddle of blood around him than his mother did.

Luckily, it only took a few moments to heal. Immediately, he was up and screaming, "HEAL HER! You have to heal her! Why did you heal me first? Go!"

The man rushed over to his wife, the healing glow coming…

…and going.

Chris was standing a small distance away, crying his eyes out.

"It's too late, isn't it?" he whispered in shock.

"NO!" the elder man shouted.

"Why didn't you heal her first?" he demanded.

"She's fine," Chris's father forced out, trying to make the healing glow come again.

"No… she isn't. It isn't working… the demon just wanted revenge… it was the sister of the one before… the one that had me. She wanted to kill me, and finish her sister's work."

"SHUT UP, CHRIS!" his father boomed, waving his hand, and sending the kid across the room.

"OH MY GOD!" I exclaimed. "How could he do that? His wife is dead, so he decides to throw his son across the room? What is wrong with him?"

"Well, Piper, do I have to hand you a list? Although, Chris was being kind of annoying. I probably would've done the same," Matt replied simply, shrugging.

"Okay, so she's dead, right? Can the memory end now?" Phoebe asked. "This is… well, it's awfully depressing."

"Nope. Just one more thing," Matt said softly. "You need to see one more thing."

"YOU!" Chris's father shrieked, rounding on his son. "THIS IS YOUR FAULT! Why didn't you heal her?"

Chris was slumped on the ground next to the wall, curled up in a little ball. "Are you really asking me that question? I was unconscious! And I can't heal! You know that!"

"Maybe if you practiced more, your mother wouldn't be _dead_," the man screamed. "You could've vanquished that demon. So could've she! But you had to be a little damsel in distress, and she had to protect you! Now look what's happened!"

"Dad, I- it's not my fault. I couldn't- I tried. I had an athame in my gut!" Chris defended weakly. My heart went out to the poor child for the first time in a long time.

"So?" his father sneered. "It's all your fault!"

"No!"

"If you had never been born, your mother would still be alive."

"Please, no," he whispered forlornly.

"LEAVE!" the man screamed, before falling to the ground in what would have been heart-wrenching sobs had he not been a complete and utter asshole.

And Chris orbed out.

"Dude!" Paige exclaimed. "That was… wrong! What kind of dick of a dad would accuse his own son of being at fault for his wife's murder?"

"Yeah," Phoebe added, "What a total asshole! What's this guy's name, so I can strangle him?"

"Can't tell you that," Matt said with a smirk. Then his expression sobered. "But, do you get it now? Do you understand what you've done day in and day out since he got here? Haven't you accused him without basis? Made him feel like he was at fault for everything? And I'll tell you something. Leo? He acts an awful lot like Chris's dad."

"Can we just go back now," I begged. "I need to apologize. I just… I have to let him know. I can't- I just can't do this anymore. I have to apologize."

With a smirk, Matt agreed, "As you wish."

He snapped his fingers, and our surroundings disappeared.

* * *

It had taken me a while, but I finally decide to do it.

I was going to spy on Chris's living quarters.

I wasn't sure what made me decide to. Maybe it was because the sisters were missing. Maybe it was because of this mysterious new future-boy who my memory of is rapidly retreating. Maybe it was just as something to do.

Nevertheless, I orbed to P3. It didn't take me long to find his room. It was vacant, and rather clean. No papers scattered around. Nothing. I was about to leave when something caught my eye.

A picture. Not a framed one or anything, just a small piece of paper with a crease down the middle. Curious, I went over and picked it up.

There, smiling up at me, were two young teenagers. One was blonde with blue eyes, a bubblegum pink party hat, and a goofy grin as he gave bunny ears to the other, who looked a little younger and seemed to be in the process of rolling his eyes at the other boy.

If I wasn't mistaken, the younger one was Chris. As for the other… he looked awfully familiar, and if my suspicions were correct, we had made an even worse mistake that I had originally thought.

Flipping it over, my fears were confirmed. For there, written in neat pencil, was the following message.

_Wyatt and Chris, 2017_

_Chris's 13th Birthday_

_

* * *

_A/N: OH CRAP! What's gonna happen next?

Is that a good enough cliffy for you? I hope it was. I really want to live up to my title.

Unfortunately, my writing has been really sucky lately. I'm seriously disappointed with this chapter. This is like, the least original Piper death I could have possibly come up with. And Leo freaking out at Chris like that? It was what had to happen, but it was laaaaaame.

-sighs-

Now I feel disappointed in myself. I really could've done better with this...

Ah, well. Such is life. Not all of my chapters will be perfect.

Hope you all liked it anyway! I will be taking a brief break from this. I HAVE to finish another story I'm working on. If you're a Xiaolin Showdown fan, can you check it out? It's called Le Morte De Raimundo. I've been postponing the chapter I'm working on for awhile cuz there's a serious turning point. Damn me... I have too many stories in the works and people just don't seem to understand what the word "hiatus" means... Grr...

So, um, hope you like it? REVIEW! We're shooting for 100, people. And if we get there... you get a very good chapter with Piper getting her ass handed to her! I know you all want that, and I AM WILLING TO DELIVER! Just review and give me 100! Come on! Please!

Oh, and I almost forgot, I'm considering switching the story into the third person. As much fun as it is doing everyone's PoV, it's getting confusing to me. So, is it alright with all of you if I switch it to 3rd?


	9. Author's Note

**A/N: **I have lost my writability. I am in a slump. The very worst kind of writer's block a girl can get. Everything I write sounds flat and awful. Well, except the humor, anyway... You can see it falling in this. It was AWESOME at the start, then it just... fell flat. I want to redo Sincerity, and just discontinue it now, but rewrite it, fixing the things I shouldn't have done. Like the whole memory crap. AWFUL! I was going to have Wyatt do something evil, then I went kind of wacko... So, I'm redoing Sincerity. I might keep the original up, or I might not. That's up to you.

If it's a no-go for the original, then I'll delete it in about a month. If you guys want me to keep it, I'll keep it, and post Sincerity Redone as... well, something like that.

Or, if you guys want me to continue regardless, because I'm being a self-depreciating lunatic that doesn't know how awesome her own stories are, I'm good with that too!

Okay, so it's either A, B, or C. You can mention in a review, anonymous or otherwise.

A) Delete this piece of crap!

B) Write the new one, but keep this old thing hanging around.

C) WHAAAAT? NO! CONTINUE YOU IDIOT, CONTINUE! THIS IS GOOOOD! I LIKE IT! BAHHHH!

Umm... and C isn't making fun of you if you choose it. That's what I say in reviews to people when I think they haven't updated soon enough. :)

Now, though, since you were SUCH a great audience, the long awaited "Piper-gets-her-ass-handed-to-her" part _WILL _be up. Just… not yet... I need to recover my writability, or this will end up even stupider than it already is.

On the bright side, HAPPY NEW YEAR! Oh, and I almost forgot. I changed my penname... again. The last one got a few disgruntled replies from people I know. Mainly Rachel (my twin according to our mutual friend) and Melimsah (The actual Queen of Cliffhangers. Seriously. Look her up if you like Danny Phantom, Teen Titans, or Witch Hunter Robin. I actually haven't read anything by her of the latter genre, but, knowing Melimsah, it's probably epic. Oh, and you HAVE to read Never Alone, because I'm the beta of that... so... yeah.) So, anyway, I use Just A Girl With a Keyboard for most everything, so, what the heck.


	10. Another AN

It's been over a year since I've updated this. I feel awful. Beyond awful. Incredibly awful. But, in that year, my writing skills have improved, and… I hope I can salvage this. I think I can. I hope I can… This is far from abandoned. I am revising it. When I finish revising it, I WILL update. With a REAL chapter.

This would have happened ages ago, but my computer crashed, and I lost all my files. I managed to save most of my original work, but _all _of my fanfiction was lost. I'm going off of the fanfiction website's back up thing for editing. All of the stuff I had planned for this is gone. And it wasn't in the forefront of my mind at the time, so I don't really remember it. I'm hoping to get back in the swing of things as I go, but… it might take a while. I hope you can bear with me until then, and don't give up on this, please!


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